Training & Recruitment: Train to Gain

When former pub managers Mary and Ray Tabone took their first tenancy they knew that staff training would be crucial to their success - not to mention their ability to leave the business in capable hands when they wanted to take a few days' break.

Like most first-time tenants, though, they were faced with a dilemma. They didn't have time to do it properly themselves but neither could they afford the full cost of bringing in a professional trainer to do it for them.

But when Mary went on the internet and Googled 'hospitality NVQs' she quickly found a solution to the problem.

The government's Train to Gain project was just getting under way and from its website she was able to find a specialist hospitality skills broker who advised her on what she needed, the subsidised courses that were available and a choice of training providers.

Only a few months later and the pub's full-time barman Bertrand Lissalde is well on his way to gaining a hospitality management qualification - and eight months into their tenancy of Young's pub the Rising Sun in Pimlico, South London, Mary and Ray are feeling confident about getting that break!

"Before we came here we were managers with Gales Brewery and we were used to getting good training for our people," explains Mary. "We knew that we needed training if we were going to build up our food and wine sales as we wanted.

"And if you don't have well-trained staff you can't get out of the building!"

Within a week, having discussed their needs with skills broker Keith Crossman, the Tabones had chosen a training provider and met Jo Rouse, hospitality assessor with the North London-based company Keeping it Simple Training.

Bertrand had already received two years' training at a catering school in France before coming to England six years ago - and finding that he liked working in pubs. So it was agreed he would go straight to a level three NVQ, consisting of five mandatory units covering supervisory skills, working relationships, resourcing, health and safety and self-management, plus three optional units to fit the requirements of both the Rising Sun and Bertrand's career. These would be wine list development, organising functions and cellar management.

"The course is designed to be tailored to each employee," says Jo. "We assess the employee's competence by giving them things to do and observing."

That assessment method continues throughout the training. Bertrand is given tasks to master and when he feels he is ready Jo goes into the pub to watch him in action, gathering the evidence that will go towards his qualification.

Learners train at their own pace. Most will take between a year and 18 months to complete a level three NVQ, normally after gaining a level two. Jo hopes Bertrand, who started the training in Dec-ember, will complete it by the end of this year.

"He has a feel for training," she explains. "But people fall into different types of learning styles and you have to adapt the training to each individual. Others might need extra support."

Jo visits the Rising Sun every two or three weeks to check on Bertrand's progress, spending up to a couple of hours observing him or getting feedback from employer and employee about how it's going.

Every 10 weeks there is a formal review which gives a better picture of how much has been achieved and what there is still to do.

Bertrand is tested on his knowledge of the job, answering questions about what he would do in different situations - and to get through to the next stage of the training he must get 100 per cent right.

But an NVQ isn't just about abstract knowledge. Bertrand is also assessed on the practical contributions he makes to the business in the course of his learning. He has already produced a new wine list for the pub, which Mary says is going well.

"Training Bertrand properly actually saves us money," she says. "We don't have the time to put him through independent training but with this NVQ we can do a little with him every day."

The NVQ course is fully funded by the Learning & Skills Council to the tune of £1,800, but the Tabones are paying for Bernard's statutory training, which doesn't normally get funding. This includes the basic food hygiene qualification and the National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders.